In an announcement which is likely to please many Liverpool fans, along with those of the other three clubs involved, the EFL has confirmed that VAR won’t be used for the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
The Reds take on Fulham in the last four of the competition, with the first leg taking place at Anfield on Wednesday night and the return a fortnight later, while Middlesbrough and Chelsea meet to decide the other place in the final at Wembley next month.
Due to the Teesside club being in the Championship since 2017/18 and therefore not having VAR in place, it’s been decided that the technology won’t be used at all in this phase of the competition, in order to ensure uniformity across all four semi-final matches.
As explained on the EFL’s official website: “Given the system is not installed at one of the participating semi-finalist Clubs and to maintain fairness and consistency, VAR technology will not be used in the Carabao Cup semi-final stage this season.
“This is in line with previous rounds of this season’s competition when at some grounds, but not all, VAR has been available. VAR is installed at Wembley Stadium and as per our previous commitment VAR will be used in February’s final.”
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The absence of VAR for the Carabao Cup semi-finals is likely to be welcomed by Liverpool supporters, considering the Reds’ experiences with it this season.
No LFC fan will quickly forget the events of 30 September 2023, when a farcical communications mess-up between the officials operating the technology resulted in a perfectly legitimate Luis Diaz goal being disallowed in a 2-1 defeat at Tottenham.
The Reds also had two good goals ruled out in the Boxing Day win at Burnley recently, with Harvey Elliott’s disallowed strike especially galling as Mo Salah had been pushed into an offside position, something the VAR attendants failed to act upon.
Some FA Cup third round ties over the weekend passed off peacefully without the technology in place, and the general verdict was that it was refreshing to watch games without the interference of a system which was supposed to reduce refereeing controversies in England, but has actually done the polar opposite.
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) January 8, 2024
The Athletic’s James Pearce reacted on social media to the news regarding the non-use of VAR in the Carabao Cup semi-finals with dancing and OK-hand emojis, and his reaction will likely have been echoed by many Liverpool fans who’ve had their fill of the hugely contentious system over the past few months.
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Shame it didn’t say that VAR wasn’t being used because it’s absolutely rubbish and spoils the game.